“To keep your metabolism revving, you should eat a mini meal every three hours.”

Most of us have spent the last 20 to 30 years believing these statements to be true. But what if I told you all of these common suppositions might be wrong? Or at least, might not be entirely right?

The modern approach to meal consumption actually stands in stark contrast to more historical standards. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but the reality is, we just don’t know for sure.

While you don’t necessarily need to count calories or restrict food intake when you’re not fasting, you should prioritize eating good fats and whole foods as close to their natural state as possible.

While modern standards say we should eat three meals a day with snacks between meals, historically, this hasn’t been the norm. Light, ongoing grazing and a single, larger meal is actually more representative of the makeup of historical meal timing.

So why, then, are we so convinced that skipping meals or failing to eat breakfast is “bad” for health and metabolism?

The easy answer is, “Well, research says so,” but that’s only sort of true. The field of nutritional research is still relatively new, and most studies leading to the commonly held beliefs that you shouldn’t skip meals or deny yourself breakfast don’t account for every contributing variable.

For instance, a large-scale epidemiological study that draws the correlation between skipping breakfast and weight gain may not consider factors such as high-stress jobs or the consumption of highly processed foods as co-factors to skipping breakfast.

Plus, common sense flies in the face of claims that skipping meals always negatively impacts metabolism. Just look around – the leanest of individuals are typically calorie restrictive – they control how much they eat, sometimes skipping meals to do so.

As a society, we could certainly benefit from a little more self-control in the kitchen, and if diets are hard to maintain, maybe a well-employed fasting plan could kill two birds with one stone: providing calorie restriction without the overwhelming maintenance of a long-term diet.

That’s why the recent and growing research on the impact and benefits of intermittent fasting is so interesting. And for some people, it could be a real game changer.

What Is Intermittent Fasting?

First, I want to be very clear that intermittent fasting (IF) isn’t even remotely the same thing as anorexia.

Specifically, intermittent fasting is, by nature, intermittent. In other words, it’s done for brief, controlled periods of time. Some of the best examples of intermittent fasting are those associated with religious practices.

For instance, the four-week period of Ramadan during which practicing Muslims don’t eat or drink from sunrise to sunset. They’re welcome to eat during the night, and some even eat to excess, but during the day, an intermittent fast is in effect.

Anorexia, by contrast, is sustained and extreme calorie restriction with the sole intent of fast and extreme fat loss.

3 Types of Intermittent Fasting

As in all nutrition-related subjects, there are different approaches to IF, none of which have been proclaimed the “outright winner” for fasting benefits.

This is in part because more research needs to be done, but also because everyone responds differently to nutritional interventions. In other words, outcomes can vary widely based on age, sex, activity level, underlying illnesses and weight.

Generally speaking, the most common approaches are:

1. Full Day Fasting.

Just like it sounds, a full day fast is when a person abstains from eating for a full 24 hours. Some IF plans suggest two full day fasts per week. The remaining five days may or may not follow a calorie-controlled plan.

2. Alternate Day Fasting.

Again, just like it sounds, it’s a day on/day off approach to fasting, where you alternate between fasting and non-fasting days. Usually participants are free to eat whatever they’d like on non-fasting days.

3. Partial Day Fasting.

Partial day fasting has many different approaches regarding when to eat, but what remains the same between programs is that eating is confined each day to an “eating window” – a timeframe that ranges from four hours up to 12 hours.

In other words, fasting takes place daily, but not for a full 24-hour period. Generally speaking, participants are free to eat what they’d like during their “eating window.”

What the Science Says About IF

The research on intermittent fasting is overwhelmingly positive, and not just from a fat loss perspective. A few recent studies have found IF could help:

The IF studies performed on humans in relation to body composition, muscle mass and athletic performance indicate that intermittent fasting produces the best results when done in conjunction with strength training.

You’re more likely to reduce body fat percentage and maintain or improve muscle mass when you exercise and fast together (although not necessarily on the same days).

3. Eat Well When You’re Not Fasting.

One of the big challenges of a fasting diet is the inclination to over-consume during non-fasting periods. While you don’t necessarily need to count calories or restrict food intake when you’re not fasting, you should prioritize eating healthy, whole foods.

If you counteract your fast with a day of overzealous bingeing on highly processed sugars, you may not see the changes or benefits associated with intermittent fasting.

4. Ease Your Way In.

Intermittent fasting, ultimately, is a lifestyle change. But there’s no reason you can’t give it a test run to see if it’s an approach you’re comfortable with.

Try a single, 24-hour fast to see how it feels, or follow a week of partial day fasting with an 8-hour eating window between 11am and 7pm or 12pm and 8pm. If you find the experience tolerable, consider following an ongoing plan.

Author:

Laura Williams

Laura has a Master’s Degree in Exercise and Sport Science from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (UMHB), and she holds the highly-regarded ACSM EP-C Exercise Physiologist certification. She has seven years fitness management experience and five years professional fitness writing experience. Laura is a Fitness Expert that currently manages her own online health and fitness community, GirlsGoneSporty.com

Noel Garcia

Is the 5:2 diet plan considered a fasting regiment, and what are your thoughts on it?
Noel
Los Angeles, CA

Ryan

What liquids can you consume when you’re fasting for 24 hours, if any? Black coffee OK?

Kuba

U can drink anything for sure as long as it not contains calories. Black coffee is okay, it will even help you loose more weight according to coffeine positive effects on bodyweight. It is even acceptable to put some milk into that coffee because calorie intake below 50kcals, won’t break your fast state. In my opinion the best way to do IF is to start eating like 10-12 and end near 18-20 because the hours like 6-7 after last meal are the toughest ( according to my own experience. the hardest moment is when you do it for a first time so don’t be scared.) and when you close your schedule near 20 then you will just sleep over them.
Hope I helped a bit. Sorry if I made some grammar mistakes, english is not my first language. 🙂

Tom DeFigueiredo

I think water or lemon juice cayenne MS would be part of it. I think black coffee would be one of the things the system needs a break from. I think I am a fat fock that needs to do this.

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